Singapore's 1987 "Malaysia Cup" Squad

This souvenir program

Alas, how time flies – 1987 was the year this handbook was published by the Football Association of Singapore (FAS), and to serve as a guide to Singapore's Malaysia Cup campaign that year.

It was given to me by an aunt of mine more than 30 years ago when I was a primary school kid.

I remember the idea behind the original blog post before repurposed to this present form was because I was asked by a friend if I got pictures featuring Singapore national team from the yesteryears.

A sense of nostalgic sentiment flows as I flipped through the pages and was pretty shocked to see Fandi Ahmad playing against us (only to realize that he was earning a living as a professional footballer turning out for Federal Territory (FT) later Kuala Lumpur FA).

The Lions of 1987

The centerfold of the souvenir magazine is the team photo taken at the old National Stadium.

Mr Wong Kan Seng's message

Former Deputy Prime Minister Wong Kan Seng was the then Minister for Community Development whose ministerial prerogatives included the appointing of FAS key officials (source:1,2) (such prerogative came to an end following the resumption of the FAS Council elections in 2017).

Mr Teo Chong Tee was the then FAS chairman

Teo Chong Tee was the then FAS chairman who took over the office in 1982 when he succeeded "Mr Kallang Roar" N Ganesan before stepping down in 1988.

Tee was also a former MP for Changi constituency from 1976 to 1996.

D Tokijan coached with several S.League clubs

D Tokijan was one of my favourite players when I started to follow local football as a boy, the former midfielder went on to coach in several top-tier clubs like Geylang United (now Geylang International), Balestier Khalsa, and Tanjong Pagar United.

David Lee was the undisputed number one 

David Lee was one of the best goalkeepers in the region in his prime years and had a short stint together with Fandi when both signed for Indonesian club Niac Mitra on professional terms in 1982.

Manap Hamat was known for his calmness 

Honestly speaking, I liked Manap Hamat as a player for his calm demeanour as the center-back for Balestier Central in the inaugural S.League season before the unmentionable happened to his career which could have seen him rank alongside some of the great defenders this country had produced.

Years later in December 2023, Manap saw the lift ban that was imposed on him in 1997 being lifted by FAS *** (please see the note at the foot of this blog post)

Abdul Malek's promising career derailed 

Abdul Malek had a promising career when he was at one point the first-choice 'keeper for the Singapore National Team after David Lee's first retirement in 1992

Sadly, it was another case of unmentionable occurrence that ended that rise prematurely.

Like Manap, who was mentioned above, Malek saw the lift ban that was imposed on him in 1997 being lifted by FAS as well. *** (please see the note at the foot of this blog post)

S Anthonysamy's last club was Woodlands Wellington

 

S Anthonysamy suffered an accident during a friendly match for Woodlands Wellington in September 1996 and was paralyzed ever since he passed away in 2016 at the age of 51.

Salim Moin in his playing days

 

The late Salim Moin was one of those in this 1987 batch who transited from a player to become a coach at Tampines Rovers SC in 1996 (not to be confused with the Tampines Rovers FC which was one of the eight inaugural sides of the S.League even though in 2014 Coach Salim was the Stags' head coach for a short period time).

Coach Salim passed away in November 2020 at the age of 59, he was the assistant coach of Hougang United before his demise.

Hasnim Haron (left) and V Sundram moorthy in their rookie days.

 

Hasnim Haron eventually became one of the first local players to have a boot endorsement deal, and at one point he was linked to a move to play in the Belgian League in the early 1990s.

The pacey winger did eventually venture aboard when he signed for Johor amid controversial circumstances in 1993 before joining Balestier Central in 1997 – a move that was touted as the worst kept secret in local football back then.

After leaving Balestier, Hasnim went on to play for other S.League sides like Home United (2000) and Clementi Khalsa (2001-2002)

V Sundram Moorthy left for Switzerland after the 1987 season to sign for FC Basel, he soon established himself as a cult figure in Kedah after his European adventure was over when he signed for the northern Malaysian side in 1989.

Nicknamed “The Dazzler”, Sundram was part of the star-studded 1993 Singapore “Dream Team” squad playing in an unfamiliar territory of Malaysia League's Division Two alongside their greatest rivals – Selangor.

Sundram left Singapore to play for Kelantan in 1994 before winding down his career in S.League by turning out for Woodlands Wellington and Jurong FC where he embarked on his coaching path in 1999 as a player-coach.

Abdullah Noor used to play in Australia

 

I am not sure how many remember Abdullah Noor as the "super-sub" before Steven Tan claimed that tag years later.

Perhaps, another little-known fact is that the former senior sales manager actually played professional football in Australia's Victoria Premier League, where he signed for Sunshine George Cross in 1995.

He played for Balestier Central FC in the S.League from 1996 to 1998 and was named head coach of Balestier Khalsa FC.

Abdullah's son Aqhari won the Singapore Premier League title with Lion City Sailors in 2021.

Borhan Abu Samah passed away at age 34

 

The passing away of Borhan Abu Samah at the young age of 34 back in 1999 was a shocker to many in the scene.

Borhan was a tough defender known for his hard tackling, and one of the vivid memories I had on the night he passed away was when I was at Toa Payoh Stadium after a Singapore Cup match where a TV crew gathered some of his former teammates to talk about the man who was nicknamed the “Russian Tank”.

*** On 21st December 2023, FAS announced life bans imposed on Manap Hamat, Abdul Malek and two other individuals were lifted, please click this link for more information.

PS: This article was first published on 6th January 2008 and is being refurbished with additional details in line with the content repurposing of this blog on 22nd February 2022 before the third update was carried out on 21st December 2023.